HotelChatter

At nearly 30 stories tall, it is quite the landmark and, particularly when lit up at night with a giant W on the facade, very visible. Walking inside, there is a soaring atrium and the typical stylish W-vibe.

There is a lobby lounge and restaurant area to the left and elevators to guest rooms and the hotel's nightclub, Eclipse on the 26th floor, are straight ahead. Getting off the elevator, you have a panoramic view spanning the entire city.

The ceiling is wave-shaped throughout and changes color, anything from deep red to ice blue. Through the hall you walk to the front of the building where the floor is split in two sections (from what I remember one is smoking-allowed one is non-smoking), each with its own bar.

There are low-slung benches and seats with tables scattered throughout the space, as well as benches along the floor-to-ceiling windows. All the way to the front there are VIP areas (pictures are on the web) - I suppose they could be nice to hang out, but they seemed quite narrow to me.

Obviously, the view is one of the key things Eclipse has going for it; one side towards the Port Olimpic with the Hotel Arts, the only other tall beachfront hotel and one side towards Parc de Montjuic. Even though there was the requisite lady with the list behind the rope downstairs and it took 20 minutes to go up, it was not packed to the limit.

Also, the crowd was pretty mixed - young and old, locals, hotel guests, a fairly broad mix. Drinks were at classic hotel price level - expect to pay anything from 12 Euros and up for a cocktail, although there is no entrance fee.

All in all worth to go for a drink! Keep in mind Barcelona times though; drinks usually start towards midnight and continue until 3-4am, after which you can move on to nightclubs until dawn.